1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of selecting the type of electronic part and an electronic parts maker server.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The type of capacitor used for a power supply circuit, for example, is selected in the following manner. That is, a designer of the power supply circuit (a user of electronic parts) draws up specifications for the power supply circuit. The specifications for the power supply circuit include physical conditions such as the height and the area in mounting of each of the electronic parts in addition to the electrical characteristics of the power supply circuit, for example, a switching frequency, an input voltage, an output voltage, an output current, a ripple voltage, an operating environmental temperature, an inductance value, and a turn ratio (in a case where there is a transformer) of the power supply circuit.
The designer of the power supply circuit calculates the electrical characteristics of the capacitor, for example, capacitance, ESR (Equivalent Series Resistance), and a ripple current on the basis of the electrical characteristics of the power supply circuit which are included in the specifications for the power supply circuit. The type of capacitor is selected from a catalogue created by an electronic parts maker on the basis of the obtained electrical characteristics of the capacitor.
An example of the electronic parts maker is one performing services for providing, to a user who is to purchase a capacitor used for the power supply circuit, information related to the electrical characteristics of the capacitor to be purchased, retrieving the type of capacitor corresponding to the provided electrical characteristics of the capacitor, and presenting the retrieved type to the user.
In order to select the type of capacitor utilizing such services performed by the electronic parts maker, the user must calculate the electric characteristics of the capacitor on the basis of the specifications for the power supply circuit, as in the conventional example. Such services are not so convenient for the user.